We Watch the World Goes By
by Etoile Luna
Summary: A new story! ...or more like sequel to Proof of Life. Joshua ascended. Mr. H was erased. Life goes on for Neku and the others...until things began to get chaotic with the higher ups. When old friends were called into action, what will it mean for Shibuya? What will happen when a threat begins to stir in the peaceful Shibuya and how will this be the end of the world as they know it?
1. Teaser

**A/N:** Hello, it's me again :) Welcome to a new project I started loooooooonnnnnggg ago. This is supposed to be a sequel to _Proof of Life_...but well, I'm not sure people would want one. I mean, I'm pretty much happy about the endings of both of my stories. So this teaser I give you is to show you what I have in mind for the sequel. To be quite honest, I'm having fun doing this project and I'd like it if more people could read it. But I don't know. Be sure to tell me whether I should post this or not in the reviews :) the first few chapters are done already so it might only take time to be beta-ed and will be up quite fast.

Without further ado, _We Watch the World Goes By_ Teaser chapter

* * *

"…_What do you mean the position of Shibuya's Composer is still empty?"_

"_This is not just a matter of Shibuya's plane of existence, but of ours as well."_

"_Connection between each different planes can be made, but there are layers of security between each planes that can't easily be breached by any existence, 7 of them."_

"…_how is it that the world is involved but the angels refuse to help?"_

"_Well Phones…this isn't easy to explain…"_

After the end of Christmas last year, Neku and friends were once again thrust into a world of troublesome fights between planes of existence. When Noises breached through their plane of existence and into the RG, rumors of apocalypse began to spread. But it might just come true, for war between good and evil that began even before the world was born might just start to spread into the world of the unawares' that were human beings. When the angels' true intentions were doubted, would Neku and the others be able to help stopping the oncoming calamity or would the world really and truly end for real with them?

"…_My name is Yoshiya Kiryu, and I am the archangel appointed to the task of protecting Shibuya."_

_End Teaser_

__**A/N:** So...what do you think? *hides under a rock* ...review please. First chapter should be up soon...if you want it. Ciao.


	2. Prologue

**A/N:**

Hello, sorry this takes so long. I've had a rather busy week. :) Well, I've decided to post the story. I'm hoping that you'd like it. This is just the prologue. Please read the A/N afterwards to understand a bit of what I had in mind.

Beta-ed by **Nirex** as usual, thank you dear~ ;)

Without further ado, enjoy the prologue.

**Warning**: I don't think there's anything dangerous here.

**Pairing(s):** none so far

**Disclaime**r: Not mine. Still Square Enix and Jupiter's, and will always be.

_**Prologue**_

"…and that concludes my report about the disturbance in District 109," an angel with golden hair spoke in an expressionless tone as another piece of paper was added onto a table that was in front of him. The round table that was about 12 feet long seated about 30 angels who all wore similar expressions as the angel doing the report. Despite that, no one was speaking, which left the room with a somewhat dreary feeling. They all looked toward an old man who sat at the other end of the long table, wearing a fatigued expression. Clearly, he was a respected figure who all of the angels looked up to. The old angel sighed wearily as he read the report paper regarding the said disturbance that had happened again for the umpteenth time this month.

"Master Seraph, what do you reckon we should do?" an angel with an accent rose from her seat. "District 109 has suffered several attacks since the start of the year. If this keeps up, we don't know what might happen."

The old angel shook his head. "I understand, my friend, but if you would please be patient," he said kindly to the young woman. "109 has only suffered minor damage. We have to be a bit more patient before deciding whether we should take part in it."

"I told you the decision to reclaim 109's guardian might not be right in the first place," a small stout angel said in a rueful tone. "Look at what's happening right now."

"He's right," another angel replied. "I say this calls for immediate action."

"But if we hadn't done what we did, who knows what would happen in the future. Not to mention the influence 109 has on other districts," another one cut in. "We did what was necessary. This is just a phase that will pass, just like it does with other districts at times."

Just like that, a heated argument began around the conference table. A few angels, however, stood still beside the walls, bearing their silence and poker faces. The Seraph shook his head and began rereading the reports. True, the situation in District 109 needed immediate attention. But no one was currently able to handle the mess in the said district. District 109 was an unruly child to begin with. Trouble children needed special attention from special kind of people. There were none that could tend to it right now.

The blonde angel who gave the report earlier moved to sit next to the seraph and coughed to gain his attention. The seraph cast a glance at the young angel who was trying to get his attention. Satisfied that he was given what he sought, the angel bowed his head in respect before speaking.

"With all due respect, Master Seraph, I feel inclined to make a suggestion," he said. "I think it is necessary to make a move to fix the trouble brewing in District 109. I have seen the situation with my own eyes. Things were starting to get ugly and it might get uglier if we let it go on. I am imploring that you please give us command and we will move to settle the trouble."

The seraph smiled softly. The young angel wasn't saying anything new. In fact he was just like the others, imploring him to make a decision to help the troubled district. But his politeness and the way his eyes shined with concern for the said district moved the old man's lips into a fond smile. "Then tell me, my dear friend. What do you propose I do?" he asked softly. "There is no one capable of caring for 109 right now. After the previous year, we sadly had to rid it of its caretaker, as you already know yourself."

"Yes, I know. I was there," the young angel nodded. "And I know what I am proposing is crazy, but…we might just not have another choice."

"My dear Astral, you are not asking me to…"

"Yes, Master Seraph," the angel named Astral said. "What choice to do we have? The only people capable of handling District 109 are with us. We have the capability to help. YOU have the capability to help."

"That is just nonsense!" an angel interjected. Apparently, the silent conversation had not been unheard by the others present around the table. And of course, just like that, another upheaval began, this time regarding the seemingly absurd idea the angel Astral just proposed.

"You are out of your mind, Astral!"

"The only person capable of handling District 109 is currently unable to move back and stop the disturbance! There is no way—"

"Not the only one," Astral interrupted. The rest of them immediately fell silent. "Not _the only one_."

"Unacceptable," a senior angel stated. "Asking for help fromhim?! You are out of it, my friend! That is just simply unacceptable!"

"When are we going to set aside our pride and just settle for what we have?" Astral argued. "We have what's necessary, and we all know he's the only one available. So why not?"

"Sanae Hanekoma is currently in purgatory," another angel argued. "Asking for help from a fallen is simply—"

"He did it out of love," Astral interjected. "He might have fallen, but his love for his district is not something that we can deny. I am certain he would be more than willing to help."

"What if he causes more disorder instead?" an angel with red hair questioned. "We all know the troubles that we had to deal with thanks to his actions."

"Then do you have any other suggestion?" Astral huffed. Honestly, these old timers were such—

"Very well."

All eyes darted to the only voice agreeing with the young angel's suggestion. "Are you sure, Master Seraph?" the senior angel questioned meekly. The old angel shook his head, the fond smile still present on his face.

"Yes. I command you to take Sanae Hanekoma out of purgatory and put him back in his station until the disturbance is past. Sanae Hanekoma is now once again District 109—Shibuya's—Producer."

**_End Prologue_**

**A/N:**

...well? How did that go?

Yes, Hanekoma will be back in this series. Before you lower the 'cliched' thing at me, I just wanna tell you where I got this idea from the game:

_"…those erased within the Game __disperse the mind and spirit housed within their flesh __in the form of Soul. Thus, they are erased only from __visible existence: their Soul persists in the UG until __gathered and tied together according to a new code"_

:) I've got that to justify my actions please don't kill meh. I need him for the plot. Hehe *prepares to duck from minivans*

By the way, cookies for those who gets where I get the 109 thing x) some real references will be good. We all know I love that *or maybe we don't*

I will post chapter 1 as soon as possible. Dear beta has beta-ed it for me. I just haven't retouched it yet.

Reviews could help anyone, no matter how good they are, so it'll mean a lot to me, since I'm not that good ;) thanks a lot~


	3. Chapter 1

**A/N**:

Sorry for the long wait. And thank you for the reviews :) I appreciate every comments.

Beta-ed by Nirex, thank you dear~ ;)

Chapter 1 at your service

Warning: ...I don't know how to put warnings without giving spoilers so...enjoy.

Pairing(s): slight Neku/Shiki in here ;)

Disclaimer: Still not mine. Am not surprised.

_**Chapter** **1**_

Neku Sakuraba huffed as he flung yet another sketch down the dumps. The winds from his open window caressed him softly as if consoling him for yet another failed drawing. The breeze was cold; meaning it might rain soon—again. There had been a lot of rain lately, not to mention that the weather forecasts had been wrong every single time. Sometimes he felt like they did it on purpose just to piss him off.

A ring from his phone stirred him from his train of thoughts and he picked the purple gadget up lazily. It was Shiki. He put the phone on loudspeaker and mumbled a slurred "hello," to it. Shiki's voice from the other side giggled.

"Bad time?" she asked. Neku mumbled a disgruntled reply, which Shiki took as a 'no', surprisingly. "How are the portfolios going?"

Neku gave his desk a not-so-gentle kiss and groaned. Shiki gave a choppy laugh before replying, "Still no? When are they due anyway?"

"Don't know, don't care," Neku moaned, turning his head around to face the phone. "How's the project you and Eri are doing anyways? Still the same problem?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Unfortunately, yeah," Shiki sighed. "Lack of budget, lack of interest. Not from us, mind you. People are not taking us seriously, since we're still undergraduates. But without proper help from side jobs, I might not be able to afford going to my favorite college. Eri is good since her family's rich, but I will need extra money to go to."

Neku smiled fondly. "You'll make it," he said. "We'll make it. We always do."

Shiki smiled at her friend through the phone. "I can't believe we're going to college already," she said, looking up from her sewing machine towards the closed window of her room. "Feels like yesterday we just finished the game and returned to life."

Neku smiled wistfully. Yes, it felt just like everything happened only yesterday. All that frustration, that pent up anger and resentment towards everything that moved, those tears and laughs…everything seemed to move so fast after those long 3 weeks. Oh, and there were those days with the others at Traverse Town too.

Now, he was nearing the end of high school.

He was getting older, he thought as he shoved away the somber mood in his mind far far away. He'd ponder on them some more when he was not talking with Shiki. "Someone's getting sappy here," he teased. He could hear Shiki pouting through the phone and chuckled. "Still going tomorrow?" he asked.

"Yeah, God knows I need a time off," she said. "Beat and Rhyme are joining us too, they said they're going to need the recreational activity, as Rhyme described it."

Neku laughed. "They should. Things are getting extra hectic with those two." Going into high school and college at the same time was a headache really, especially for the parents who had to pay for all the cost. "Usual place?"

"Yeah," Shiki nodded, not that Neku could see. "We used to go to Wild Kat at this time of the week, didn't we…"

Immediately, though, as if sensing Neku's sudden change in mood at the mention of the café, the brown haired girl sighed. "Oh, sorry…not good?"

Neku, on the other side of the phone, looked down to the headphones lying next to the pillow on his bed. His gaze turned softer but he still smiled and shook his head, laughing a bit. "Nah, it's alright," he assured her. He paused a bit, as if to ponder. "I miss them too. Mr. H…and Joshua."

He did tell Shiki and the others about Mr. H and Joshua, and the event that took place that week before Christmas. He remembered people saying that talking about your problems help. Well, they were right. Talking to the others helped lighten up his mood a bit. Knowing that the others cared about Mr. H just as much as he did really was helpful to get over the man's erasure.

Although nobody shared the bond he had with Joshua, talking about him helped too.

Shiki could relate to how Neku felt about Joshua. She had Eri. His relationship with Joshua was more complex, though. It wasn't as if they were best friends. Heck, they could hardly be called friends. Even so, Neku cared a great deal for Joshua. They knew each other for only a week, plus that one last week he spent with the ex-Composer. That shouldn't have been enough to get them into the term of 'best friend', right?

Although, it certainly felt like he was, Neku's best friend, that is. Like Shiki, Beat, and Rhyme, Joshua held a special place in Neku's heart. Each of them had something that was irreplaceable to Neku; his four best friends. He was at first reluctant to think of Joshua as one. But after what happened, although many things still remained a mystery about the prissy kid (yeah, he was a prissy kid, nothing could change that), Neku was more comfortable now calling him one of his best friends.

"Yeah, it hasn't been that long but I've missed Mr. H like he's been gone forever. I didn't really know Joshua though, so I can't really say much," Shiki admitted. "But I'm sure he's fine wherever he is. You said he ascended, right? So he has to be well."

Neku gave a reluctant agreement, "Perhaps so. I'd like it if I could make sure, though."

But he knew he couldn't. The only connection he had with the higher ups was gone. Only Mr. H could've told him how Joshua was doing and the man was bloody erased. Up till now he still thought it was unfair for Mr. H to suffer such punishment.

Word got out fast that CAT went missing, after the publishers lost contact with the said person. Shibuya was frantic for a while, but eventually, everything went back to normal. It was as if CAT had never existed in the first place. Neku felt sad at how quickly people forgot about the great artist, but he supposed it was their own way of coping. People forget, they always do.

"Say," Shiki spoke through the phone. Neku knew that tone; it was the tone Shiki always used whenever she had an idea. "What do you say we go to visit Wild Kat's before going to Hachiko?"

Neku raised his left eyebrow, "Why?" he asked quizzically. "There's no one there."

"I know, it's just…" Shiki mumbled. "I kinda miss it. If you don't want to it's alright, though…"

Neku sighed. Shiki should've known by now that he couldn't refuse her with that kind of tone. Stupid Neku, stu—oh whatever. "Sure, why not. I'll meet you on Scramble's."

Neku could've sworn he felt Shiki grinning through the phone. "Great! I'll see you tomorrow then. We should meet up an hour earlier so we don't keep Beat and Rhyme waiting."

"Alright then, see you there," Neku nodded.

He smiled wanly as he thought about Wild Kat and last year's Christmas. Who knows, maybe he'd find those two gift boxes still waiting in front of the café, he thought lightheartedly.

=====00000=====

"Say Neku, don't you think things are rather…quiet lately?" Shiki asked as they walked through Miyashita Park. Neku looked puzzled and Shiki shrugged. "I mean, Shibuya's always so noisy—in a good sort of way though. But recently I noticed things are a bit…"

"Muddled?"

"Quite right."

Neku 'hmm'-ed as he pondered her words. True, he'd noticed things were a bit different from the usual. Perhaps one might say that Shibuya had gone quiet, like Shiki put it. But Neku wouldn't go that far. He would just say it was different. Not that normal people would've noticed, though. They were too busy with their own problems to think about that, just like they always were.

"Perhaps it's just the new Composer is trying to get used to taking care of Shibuya?" Shiki suggested. Neku cringed inwardly. He still hadn't gotten used to the idea of someone else other than Joshua being the Composer.

"Who knows," he shrugged. "Maybe we should just crash Shibuya River and get acquainted with the new Composer whoever it is. That should get us to the core of what's going on in Shibuya."

"I certainly hope you're joking," Shiki deadpanned.

"Who knows."

"You're impossible," Shiki chuckled. Neku smiled as the two went near Wild Kat. They were surprised to find the scent of coffee beans through the closed doors, however.

They exchanged glances and were quiet for a good 10 seconds before barging in through the door—it was unlocked despite the 'closed' sign. They were greeted with the sound of coffee machines brewing and the smell of freshly baked donuts. There was no one behind the counter, though.

"…hello?" Shiki tried, peeking through the kitchen doors. Neku looked around the shop. There were signs of activity although there was no one there to be found. He flinched when he heard the sound of vacuum cleaner whirring not-too-loudly from the second floor. The sound was covered by the brewing of coffee machine, oven and other whatnots in the kitchen. Mr. H's vacuum cleaner was a good new model to begin with, though, so it produced little to no noise.

"Neku, wait!" Shiki called out when she saw Neku dashing towards the stairs. She quickly followed her friend up the stairs and towards the huge main bedroom of Wild Kat's second floor living area. Sure enough, the sound of vacuum cleaner whirring came from the main bedroom. She saw Neku standing in front of the door, frozen in place at the sight before him.

Shiki gasped as she peered over Neku's shoulder. The scene before them was something she'd never thought she would see.

It was Mr. H. Cleaning his bedroom.

Wearing a white apron and a makeshift bandana on his head.

But it wasn't the oddity of Shibuya's Producer's attire that shocked them. Both of them stared, open mouthed for a couple of minutes until the other occupant of the room noticed their presence.

Sanae Hanekoma stopped walking around the room at the sight of two unexpected visitors in front of his bedroom door. He grinned and waved to them. Neku's eyes were rounder than his donuts and his mouth was agape. He stuttered.

"B-but how? Y-you were—you…"

"Yo, Phones, and Shiki too," the barista greeted as he switched off his vacuum cleaner. "Wasn't expecting to see you two. We're still closed, you see. I thought I didn't forget to lock the door when I got in. Guess I did forget then."

"Mr. Hanekoma?" Shiki whispered in disbelief. "Is that really you?"

Hanekoma tilted his head, smile never went away from his face. "Sure hope so. I'd be horrified if someone else is cleaning my bedroom. This is private property, you know."

Without warning, Shiki launched herself and clung to the dust-covered barista. To say that Hanekoma was surprised by this sudden action was an understatement. It was his turn to have two rounded orbs for eyes and a stupid dumbfounded expression on his face. Neku walked towards the two slowly and carefully, his eyes scanning the barista for anything out of the ordinary.

Hanekoma frowned. "Is it really surprising that I am doing spring cleaning?" he questioned. Neku gawked at him some more, before a smile slowly fought its way to his lips. Before long, he was laughing out loud, clutching his stomach in pure glee.

And Hanekoma?

Let's just say that his expression was true blackmail material.

=====00000=====

"…so the Boss did go to you for help, didn't he? That's how you two found out about my erasure?" Hanekoma said as he sipped on his freshly brewed coffee. The three were sitting on the couch in the café with a plate of donuts and cups of coffee in hand. Neku nodded, smile still apparent on his face.

"Well, it wasn't exactly like that, but that'll do I guess," he answered. "But man, I'm glad you're alright, Mr. H! I thought you were gone for real!"

"We missed you, Mr. Hanekoma!" Shiki agreed.

Mr. H smiled softly at the two, rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry about that," he said. "But you know, souls are never really gone—unless they were eaten by Noise. For the souls to be erased is only from the visible existence. I was undergoing a series of…let's just say punishment until a few moments ago."

Neku laughed. "I should've known we couldn't get rid of you that easily, Mr. H!" he said.

"If you are alright, then Joshua is okay too, right?" Shiki asked. "I mean, Neku said he ascended, so he's gotta be doing fine up there, yeah?"

Mr. H's expression was unreadable. "Yeah," he agreed. "J's alright up there. No need to worry about him."

Neku's smile faded a bit. "…good," he nodded. "As long as he's doing fine."

Shiki's phone rang with a melodious tone all of a sudden, interrupting their reunion. She quickly opened the phone and mouthed 'Rhyme' to Neku before standing up, answering the call from their youngest friend. Neku looked at her fondly before turning back to Mr. H and smiled.

"…really, it's great to have you back, Mr. H," he repeated. "I was really angry when the higher ups notified us about your erasure. It was really, the worst news of the century, for me and for the others as well."

Hanekoma smiled apologetically. "Well, technically you weren't supposed to find out about that," he admitted. "But I suppose you'd have found out sooner or later anyways. And at any rate, how are things?"

Neku shook his head. "Well, you know, the usual stuff," he said. "Me, Shiki, and Beat are going to college next year. I'm preparing my portfolio even as we speak. I haven't really decided about what to make, though."

"You're going to take art, yeah?" Hanekoma said. "Good for you Phones, I always knew you have the knack for drawing."

"I'm nowhere near as good as you," Neku said. "I'm still unsure whether I should take art or not, though. I mean, I like it, but I'm not sure if I want to do it for the rest of my life."

Hanekoma's smile was fatherly. "You do what you like, Phones. Enjoy the moment, yeah?" he reminded. "Don't forget, university is just a part of your life. You still have got a long ways to go."

Neku nodded. "I know, thanks," he agreed. "You know, Mr. H…I was wondering…about Josh, is he—"

"Rhyme and Beat are coming over," Shiki informed as she returned to her seat, interrupting Neku's speech. He didn't seem miffed though, and just nodded. Hanekoma grinned at the mention of the Biito siblings.

"How's Daisukenojo and young Rhyme these days?" he asked. Shiki laughed.

"Don't let him hear you call him that," she said. "They're doing okay. Rhyme's coping well with the loss of her dreams. I think she'll be alright. She was quite sad for a while though."

Hanekoma nodded sympathetically. "I understand. Losing your goal is difficult. But she's a pure little soul. She'll find another goal that's much better than the previous one."

"Anyway, now you're back with us again," Shiki said cheerily. "This time it's for good, right?"

Hanekoma's face darkened a tone for a second but quickly returned to its normal bored look, though, and waved his hand leisurely. "Let's just hope so, although you know them; they'd do what they have to do at whatever the cost," his face was unreadable. "Nothing for you guys to worry though. You should just be prepared to face finals. You're gonna need all the space you can spare in your funny little heads for those."

Shiki pouted. "I don't want to be reminded of those, Mr. Hanekoma," she sulked. "We're here for fun today, not a painful lesson in reality."

The two laughed at it while Neku went back to his private train of thought. He seemed to be missing something, but he couldn't put his hands on what. He didn't get a chance to really dig deep into it, though, as not one minute later, Beat and Rhyme came crashing through the door and once again, Mr. H was put in an awkwardly touching reunion.

But at least everything was alright, if just for a moment.

=====00000=====

It was already dark when Neku and the others exited Wild Kat. The return of Mr. H was really unexpected but nevertheless great. Beat didn't even complain about not getting his curry ramen, and that was saying something. Neku grinned. Everything was great, and nothing could've changed his mind about it.

He did, however, notice that there was more graffiti than usual on the walls of Miyashita Park Underpass, and not all of them were even close to being good. Most of them were obscenities and indecent scribbles that just served to hurt the eyes. Neku frowned. How come he didn't notice those things before? And who the hell did that? Certainly not Mr. H; he'd just been back a few hours ago. And there was no way CAT would do something so ugly like those.

"Those punks at it again," Beat answered to Neku's unvoiced questions. Neku raised his brow. "Y'know, drop outs and the likes. Biker gangs? Thugs running round the streets razing things and whatnot?"

"Oh yeah, those, I read them in the papers," Shiki chimed in. That explains it, Neku thought inwardly, he rarely paid attention to the newspapers. "I heard that the police didn't even bother to do anything about them."

"They said even the police couldn't handle those delinquents," said Rhyme. "There was a big fight in one of the schools when the teachers tried to stop the biker gangs from nearly killing one of their students."

"What's happening around here?" Neku wondered out loud. "What's Joshua's replacement doing? Why is the new Composer letting this happen?"

"Well, not like this hasn't happened before yo, no need to get all riled up 'bout it," Beat shrugged.

"Only before the numbers were so small we barely even noticed," Rhyme deadpanned. "But Beat's right Neku, no need to get upset about it. Mr. Hanekoma is here too, so things will go back to normal soon enough I'm sure. Remember, patience is virtue."

"I agree, let's leave things to Mr. Hanekoma and the new Composer. I'm sure it'll be alright," Shiki agreed.

Neku took one last glance at the ugly painting on the wall before quickly following his retreating friends towards the busy streets near Towa Records.

=====00000=====

To say that Sanae Hanekoma was not pleased would be an understatement.

But yes, Sanae Hanekoma was not pleased.

Shibuya was a wreck. And that was saying it lightly.

He rubbed the back of his neck. It was good to know that Phones and his friends were doing alright, but he couldn't say the same for the rest of Shibuya.

In his absence, criminal numbers went sky-high. Lots of children ditched school just to join gangs and more and more arsonists began to smear the streets of Shibuya. He groaned at the sight of his beautiful mural being sullied by cheap paintings saying cheap messages and more horrifying things he couldn't even begin to describe with words. Mind you, Sanae Hanekoma wasn't vain, and he normally wouldn't be so petty as to put down other's artwork. But that wasn't art! Those paintings were just plain eyesores! Never before had he wanted to bleach his retinas like he did now.

He cringed at the thought of his masterpiece in Udagawa Backstreet. He hadn't had the time—and courage—to check that one. Just the thought of his beautiful baby being sullied by mess similar to the ones elsewhere made him want to cry like a grown man never would.

He looked towards the scene hidden beneath the darkness of night from the UG where no one could see him. Lots of delinquents were roaming the streets. He winced at the sight of Noises surrounding those poor little souls. They could've been something special, really and truthfully. But things were worse than he thought. Shibuya's situation required special understanding and brute force would just make it worse. He didn't know how Joshua survived those years managing this…mess.

Oh dear, there he went letting the ugly discordance of the street's music effect him. He winced at the thought of how easily the bad music effected him these days. His fallen insignia hadn't fully disappeared yet, and staying here might just strengthen it instead of purifying it.

Purgatory wasn't a five star hotel in the middle of luxurious Hawaiian beach, except he needed it if he still wanted his sanity intact.

But then again…he couldn't leave his beloved city to suffer alone.

Oh well…

He roamed the streets of Shibuya from the UG, sighing sadly at times upon the sights that he met. So the reports weren't exaggerated. The boundaries between UG, RG, and the Noises' plane were terribly disrupted. As a result, Noises roamed more freely among the streets of Shibuya. Upon closer inspection, lots of seams between the planes had been torn apart by force. The Noises were getting stronger and stronger.

Shibuya was a great, big mess.

He pinched the bridge of his nose. Where was Joshua when she—Shibuya needed him?

He thought about Joshua and his eccentricity as he fingered the smooth form of a pin inside his pocket. It was Joshua's pin. He had found it lying in a small drawer in his room a while ago. Guess the boy left it there after the Game, not needing it anymore. He still remembered the boy—the man, demigod, whatever—and how surprised he was when the said boy proposed the new rule for The Game the first day of his ruling era. He had wondered then, exactly how long the boy had been planning that—a good span of time judging from how detailed his plans about the game was. By then, he just knew the boy was special. Never before would he have thought that he'd end up like this…with those stiff higher ups.

Joshua was a free soul, and should always remain so, according to Hanekoma's opinion.

A sudden silence interrupted his train of thought as he glanced around in confusion. Why the sudden silence? Noises used to roam the place, no matter how few, so there should always be sounds in Shibuya no matter where you go. This silence was peculiar, not to mention unnerving.

Oh.

So that's why.

Sanae Hanekoma gulped. Never before had he imagined something like this would occur in a city, moreover the city under his care.

On second thought, of course his city would be a perfect target.

He shook his head. He had to go to the higher ups and report this to those stiffs right now.

_End Chapter 1_

**A/N:**

Well, hope you enjoyed this as much as I did writing it. I'm kinda busy so I'll just have to hurry with this note. You guys are clever to guess the 109 reference congratz to you~ xD I'll send out cookies later.

Be sure to leave a review, helps me out a lot. Thank you :D


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